Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to (a) his oral contribution of 16 June 2021, Official Report, column 287, (b) the oral contribution of the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs of 12 January 2021, Official Report, column 162, (c) the Answer of 25 June 2021 to Question 16783 on Import Controls: China and (d) the Answers of 5 July 2021 to Questions 24880 and 24881, whether import controls are in place on goods made in China, believed to be the product of forced labour.

As set out in our response of 5 July, the Foreign Secretary announced on 12 January a review of existing export controls as they apply to Xinjiang to identify whether we can bring into scope any additional goods which could be used for internal repression or human rights violations in the region. This review is ongoing and the Government will report back to Parliament on the outcome. Import and export controls are governed by different processes and legislation, and the Foreign Secretary's announcement on 12 January referred only to export controls. The Government has serious concerns about the situation in Xinjiang and we keep our policy response under close review.